Advice on setting up a Betta (Siamese Fighting Fish) tank?

[chookie14]

Hey guys,

I recently brought home my second Betta, after unfortunately having the first one (my Christmas present!) die after 3 days. I am looking for this one to have a good, long life, so I would appreciate any advice on keeping Bettas. We believe he died due to misinformation about how much to feed him, and the built up ammonia got to him. We have fixed that this time around and now believe we have everything under control, but even so any tips or advice on how to keep my Betta happy and healthy would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!

 

[Andrew McFadden]

to AA! We hope you enjoy

 

[twoodrough]

I've got mine in a 10 gallon and change water 25% weekly. Feed lightly daily. Research the net there are lots of how to care for fish sites. Good luck on this one!

 

[Hobgob]

I have my male in a 10gal with a heater, filter, and a bunch of decor and my female is in a 5 gallon.what are you keeping yours in? A bowl or tank? Also are you using a heater and filter for him?

 

[chookie14]

He is in a 5 gallon tank, but I don't have a heater or a filter. Do I need one?

 

[Autumnsky]

Ideally yes, a filter is an excellent choice for keeping your Betta in the best possible conditions. A heater is usually good too. But as long as he is in a always warm room not as big of a deal.

Also be careful not to have him near an air conditioner vent duct, or if it is in a room which seems to get chilly probably best to have a little heater. IMO the small 3-5 gallon under gravel cirlcle shaped Zoo Med didn't keep the tank very warm. Also some heaters just always heat, don't necessarily go off in which case in summer they can make the tank too hot. So pay attention to what you are buying! Some are preset, usually 78F and cannot be changed either.

Since I have a fear of the heaters over heating and malfunctioning. (it happened once to my mom's tank) I bought one which has a onetime fuse and if it it malfunctions it will shut off. You have to buy a new heater but I felt it was worth the peace of mind, especially on a little tank, where there isn't much room for problems.

 

[Bettafanatic]

He is in a 5 gallon tank, but I don't have a heater or a filter. Do I need one?

Heaters and filters are necessary for bettas just as they are for all other tropical fish. I feed my betta fish every other day and he does well on it. I have mine in a 20 gallon with harlequin rasboras and otos. I recommend the Azoo Palm Filter. They have adjustable flow, since bettas aren't good with current, and are great little filters. Floating pellets and different frozen foods are the best.

 

[Autumnsky]

I use Hikari Betta Gold, blood worms, Tubiflex worms, Hikari sinking wafers.

The Bettas usually love resting near the surface, they like Banana Plant leaves. Soft plant leaves, especially if using plastic plants, make sure they won't snag or catch their flowing fins on the plant material!

 

[Hobgob]

You don't need a heater but you do need the temperature to be steady and not fluctuate. If your house furnace is dead on and will not allow the tank to fluctuate it will work fine as long as it is hot enough. Going this route though might cause problems in the summer since people normally have the furnace off. In which case you will need another way to keep it stable. A filter is a good idea. It will allow the tank to cycle and you won't need to do daily water changes. The filter will allow beneficial bacteria to grow so ammonia and nitrites won't be present and you will only need your weekly water changes to keep the nitrates down. If you don't use a filter you will have ammonia present almost all the time which could potentially cause some bad burns to your fish.

As far as feeding I use nls pellets and frozen foods. 3-5 pellets a day. I make sure they eat the three the first feeding and sometimes give a second one at night

 

[ktomminello]

Yea, I'm gonna go there

I know this isn't what I SHOULD give as advice- but you know what? I'm an avid betta collector. I have one in my 10g planted, another 5 in my 40g community (1 male 4 females) along with 6 otos, 4 raspbora (1 briggitae and 3 scissortail) and 1 large leopard plec. I have a 1g show tank, 2 2.5g holders and a half gallon divided with 2 babies. Yes, they should be heated, I disagree with NEEDING a filter on anything 5g or under- but here's the thing- My small tanks have filters, but it's not logical to rely on a filter that small. I COMPLETELY change the water on my unfiltered half gallon 3 times a day, I replace 75% of the water on my gallon show tank 2 times a day and 50% on my 2.5g every day. Anything nano or pico (30 gallons or less) tend to have lots of problems because people that have them don't realize that they are ticking time bombs if not monitored and balanced with pwc everyday.... The plus side is that it's way easier to put a betta in a cup and dump a half gallon of old water out and pour in freshwater a couple times a day, for me, than to wait a week and have to lug 5 gallon buckets around, lol, even though I do that anyway. Here's a couple things that I've noticed about successful betta tanks- They love to have driftwood and rock structures to hide in and play around. They are not happy in empty tanks. Plastic plants are trouble for their fins- silk flowers are better, and they love to have a leaf to lay on or under. They don't tend to do well with sharp gravel. If you make them fight through glass or using a mirror they can over flare and cause gill problems and bacterial infection. Here's the kicker- None of them is the same as the next one and if they were kept in a tank with a filter, they cannot live for long without a filter or constant water changes. Also- for feeding, here's something to keep in mind- their stomach is the size of their eye, freeze dried foods like bloodworms and mysis can cause constipation, it's better to go with frozen. I personally feed bettamin 3 times a week, hikari flakes 2 times a week and frozen bloodworms (thawed) or mysis shrimp on Saturday and fast them on Sunday. Good luck!!! Betta rule!!

 

[Hobgob]

How is that bad advice? Like I said they don't need a heater but your temperature shouldn't fluctuate. And you do three water changes on your tanks without filters because ammonia and nitrite. With a filter your bb will colonize and you wont have to do the water changes everyday.
How did you only get two babies though? Were they just an accident or did the rest not survive?